glances held, while the atmosphere of the
little room became surcharged with the terrible portent of this silent
battle of eyes. Harriet Penny gasped audibly; and as Chloe stared from
one to the other of the white, tense faces before her, her brain seemed
suddenly to numb, and the breath came short and quick between her
parted lips to the rapid heaving of her bosom. The Louchoux girl's
eyes seemed fairly to blaze with hate. The fingers of her hand dug
into the wooden back of her chair until the knuckles whitened. She
leaned far forward and, pointing directly into the face of the man,
opened her lips to speak. It was then Lapierre's gaze wavered, for in
that moment he realized that for him the game was lost.

With a half-smothered curse he leaped to his feet, overturning his
chair, which banged sharply upon the plank floor. He glanced wildly
about the little room as if seeking means of escape, and his eyes
encountered the form of Big Lena, who stood stolidly in the doorway,
blocking the exit. In a flash he noted the huge, bared forearm; noted,
too, that one thick hand gripped tightly the helve of a chopping ax,
with which she toyed lightly as if it were a little thing, while the
thumb of her other hand played smoothly, but with a certain terrible
significance, along the keen edge of its blade. Lapierre's glance
flashed to her face and encountered the fishlike stare of the
china-blue eyes, as he had encountered it once before. The eyes, as
before, were expressionless upon their surface, but deep down--far into
their depths--Lapierre caught a cold gleam of mockery. And then the
Louchoux girl was speaking, and he turned upon her with a snarl.

CHAPTER XXII

CHLOE WRITES A LETTER

When Bob MacNair, exasperated beyond all patience by Chloe Elliston's
foolish accusation, stamped angrily from the cottage, after depositing
the wounded Ripley upon the bed, he proceeded at once to the barracks,
where he sought out Wee Johnnie Tamarack, who informed him that Lapierre
was up on Snare Lake, at the head of a band of men who had already
succeeded in dotting the snow of the barren grounds with the black dumps
of many shafts. Whereupon he ordered Wee Johnnie Tamarack to assemble
the Indians at once at the storehouse.

No sooner had the old Indian departed upon his mission than the door of
the barracks was pushed violently open and Big Lena entered, dragging by
the arm the thoroughly cowed figure of LeFroy. At sigh